Apparatus for housing hose of suction cleaner

ABSTRACT

A hose-housing apparatus for the purpose of facilitating the paying-out and hauling-in of the hose accommodated at liberty in a container annexed to a suction cleaner by virtue of the reversible rotation of a pair of rotating rollers holding said hose therebetween, said rollers being installed by the side of one opening of said container and so devised as to be driven in both the normal and reverse directions, respectively, by a reversible motor, which apparatus comprises switches for the purpose of automatically stopping the normal rotation and reverse rotation of said motor as disposed in front and in the rear of said rollers, a pusher disposed both in front and in the rear of the hose for the purpose of actuating said switches, and an auxiliary switch for the purpose of manual control of said motor.

United States Patent Hukuba et al.

APPARATUS FOR HOUSlNG HOSE OF SUCTION CLEANER Inventors: Hiroshi Hukuba, Nagareyama; Iwao lkegami, Ichikawa; Teruaki Yasuda, Tokorozawa, all of Japan Assignee: Kabushiki Kaisha Hukuba Future Research, Nagareyama, Japan Filed: Apr. 1, 1974 Appl. No.: 456,461

Foreign Application Priority Data Apr. 5, 1973 Japan 48-039339 US. Cl. 137/3552; 15/314; 226/43 Int. CL 3651-! 75/34 Field of Search 137/3552, 355.16, 355.21, 137/355.22, 355.28; 15/315, 314,323;

[56] References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,595,655 5/1952 Hannay 137/3552 X 3,813,054 5/1974 Klingspor 15/323 X Primary ExaminerMartin P. Schwadron Assistant ExaminerRobert J. Miller Attorney, Agent, or Firm-Woodhams, Blanchard and Flynn ABSTRACT A hose-housing apparatus for the purpose of facilitating the paying-out and hauling-in of the hose accommodated at liberty in a container annexed to a suction cleaner by virtue of the reversible rotation of a pair of rotating rollers holding said hose therebetween, said rollers being installed by the side of one opening of said container and so devised as to be driven in both the normal and reverse directions, respectively, by a reversible motor, which apparatus comprises switches for the purpose of automatically stopping the normal rotation and reverse rotation of said motor as disposed in front and in the rear of said rollers, 21 pusher disposed both in front and in the rear of the hose for the purpose of actuating said switches, and an auxiliary switch for the purpose of manual control of said motor.

8 Claims, 3 Drawing Figures US. Patent Oct. 14, 1975 3,911,944

APPARATUS FOR HOUSING HOSE OF SUCTION CLEANER BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION The present invention relates to an apparatus for housing the hose of a suction cleaner.

As the well known means for housing the hose of a suction cleaner, there. is a housing apparatus which is so devised that the hose is wound around a rotating drum accommodated in a container belonging to the suction cleaner, which hose is held between a pair of rotating rollers which are installed by the side of an opening of said container and are to be driven by a motor, and which hose is paid out from or hauled in the container by virtue of the rotation of said rollers.

However, an apparatus of this type has been undesirable in that not only it is intricate in construction but also the job of winding the hose around the rotating drum is very difficult to perform.

One object of the present invention is to overcome the foregoing defects of the conventional apparatuses, and it is to provide an apparatus for housing the hose of a suction cleaner, which permits the hose to' fill a container therefor at liberty without resorting to the provision of a rotating drum for winding it.

Another object of the present invention is to provide an apparatus for housing the hose of a suction cleaner, wherein the switches for the motor to drive the rotating rollers for the purpose of paying-out and hauling-in of the hose are provided separately from a hand operating switch by being disposing in front and in the rear of said rollers, so that the controlling circuit of the motor can be opened by either actuating said switches by means of a pusher installed both in front and in the rear of the hose to be paid out or hauled in or operating said hand operating switch to thereby stop the rotation of the motor to being on the automatic stop of the movement of the hose, and thereafter the hose can be moved in the direction opposite to the direction of its movement before its stop by operating the hand operating switch equipped on the controlling circuit of the motor to thereby close the opened controlling circuit and also make the motor rotate in the direction opposite to that before its stop.

A further object of the present invention is to provide an apparatus for housing the hose of a suction cleaner, wherein the pusher installed in the rear of the hose is devised to be movable along the hose and, by virtue of the movement of the pusher in, this way, the time for stopping of the motor on the occasion of paying out the hose, that is to say, the length of the hose to be paid out, can be regulated.

A still further object of the present invention is to provide an apparatus for housing the hose of a suction cleaner, wherein the respectiveswitches. which serve for the automatic stopping of the motor are. two-piece sets of switches, and the two switches of each set are disposed opposite to each other across the hose and connected with the same circuit in parallel to usually form a closed circuit respectively, so that, even. when a switch disposed on one sideisforced to actuate during the movement of the hose due to the weight of the hose per se or the twist thereof, unless the hose touches the other switch disposed on the opposite side simultaneously, the controlling circuit for the motor is not opened, and accordingly, the controlling circuit for the motor is opened to stop the motor only when the two switches of each set are actuated simultaneously.

The present invention will be explained more particularly with reference to the accompanying drawings.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS In the accompanying drawings,

FIG. 1 is a front view of the vertical section of an apparatus embodying the present invention;

FIG. 2 is a perspective view, on an enlarged scale, of a portion of the same apparatus as shown in FIG. 1; and

FIG. 3 is a diagrammatic representation of the controlling circuit within the apparatus shown in FIG. 1.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE INVENTION Referring to FIG. 1, 1 denotes the container to accomodate the hose '2. In front and in the rear of the hose 2, the openings 3, 4 are provided on the container 1, and the hose 2 accommodated in the container 2 is paid out or hauled in through the opening 3. This hose 2 is made of a spiral reinforced material covered with a flexible film. The inside of the opening 4 is connected with the rear end of the hose 2'and the outside of same is connected with the inlet port of the suction cleaner provided with a suction fan, a filter, etc. which is not shown herein.

The inside of the opening 3 is equipped with the supporting frame 7, and on this supporting frame 7 are pivoted a pair of rotating rollers 5 and 5' which are disposed above and below the hose 2 so as to hold it therebetween and are devised to rotate in opposite directions. These rollers 5 and 5 are interlocked and one roller 5' is so devised as to be selectively rotated both clockwise and anticlockwise by means of the reversible motor 6 installed inside the container 1. Each of these rollers 5 and 5' is tapered toward the center thereof and its circumference is provided with a plurality of vertical grooves.

A pair of guide rings 10 and 10' disposed in front and 7 diameter of the hose 2. Each of these guide rings .10

and 10' slidably supports, in movable fashion, a pair of pins 11 and 11' disposed diametrically opposite to each other, and the outer ends of said pins 1 l and 11' touch the actuating springs 12 and 12' for the normally- I closed microswitches 8, 8' and 9, 9 installed inside the container 1, whereby the pins 11 and 11' are biased to move inwardly towardthe center under pressure of said springs.

The fore end of the hose 2 is equipped with the coupling 14 provided with the push ring 13 whose rear part is tapered into a truncated cone, and said coupling 14. is connected with the suction tube 19. The rear end of the hose 2 is screwed in'the push ring 15 having its fore portion tapered into a truncated cone provided with a spiral hole. I

FIG. 3 is illustrative of the controlling circuit for the motor 6, wherein the pair of 8, 8' and the pair of microswitches 9, 9 are connected in series with the motor 6, and said individual microswitches 8, 8' and individual microswitches 9, 9 are respectively connected in parallel l6 denotes a two pole-two position toggle switch, which is composed of the change-over switch 17 for the motor and the auxiliary switch 18 for closing the circuit as integrated. The change-over switch 17 consists of the movable contact b and the two positions a and c, and is connect in series with the motor 6. The auxiliary switch 18 is composed of the movable contact b and the two positions a and c. The circuits h and c are scope of the invention as defined by the appended claims are fully contemplated.

What is claimed is:

1. An apparatus adapted for attachment to a suction connected in parallel with the microswitches 9 and 9', 5 cleaner to facilitate the paying out and hauling in of a and the circuits a and b are connected in parallel with microswitches 8 and 8. And, the connection is so arranged that, when the circuits a and b connected with the change-over switch 17 are closed, the circuits a and b connected with the switch 18 are simultaneously closed to run the motor 6 in the normal direction; on the contrary, when the change-over switch 17 is switched over to close the circuits b and c, the circuits b and connected with the switch 18 are simultaneously closed to run the motor in the reverse direction.

Hereunder will explained how to operate the above described apparatus.

When the switch 16 is turned on for the normal rotation side, that is, a and b are closed as are a and b, the motor 6 runs in the normal direction to rotate the rollers and 5' in the normal direction, whereby the hose 2 held between said rollers is paid out from the container 1. When the tapered ring 15 provided on the rear of the hose 2 being paid out reaches the guide ring 10' and is introduced in between the pins 11 and 11' equipped on this guide ring 10', said push ring 15 pushes these pins outward, and as a result, the microswitches 9 and 9' are opened to stop the motor, whereby the paying-out of the hose 2 is discontinued.

Then, when the switch 16 is switched over to the reverse rotation side, the movable contact 1) comes to be connected with the position c so that the electric current is applied to the motor 6 by virtue of the switch 18 even when the microswitches 9 and 9' are turned off, and in addition, the movable contact b has been switched over to the connection with the position 0, so that the motor 6 starts running in the reverse direction to haul the hose 2 into the container 1. When the push ring 13 provided on the fore part of the hose 2 being hauled in reaches the guide ring 10, it pushes outward the pins 11 and 11' equipped on this guide ring 10, whereby the microswitches 8 and 8 are opened to stop the motor and discontinue the hauling-in of the hose 2.

Upon this, when the switch 16 is again turned on for the normal rotation side, the movable contact b again is connected with the position a so that the electric current is applied to the motor 6 by virtue of the switch 18 even when the microswitches 8 and 8 are opened, and the hose 2 is paid out in the same way as set forth above.

, The present apparatus renders it possible to perform the work of paying-out and hauling-in of the hose 2 accommodated in the container 1 by automatically repeating the above described operation through just the operation of the switch 16, and during said work, the dust can be sucked up through the hose 2 into the cleaner which is not shown herein connected with the opening 4.

When it is necessary to adjust the length of the hose 2 to be paid out, it suffices to move the push ring 15 forward or backward by turning it along the hose 2.

Although a particular preferred embodiment of the present invention has been disclosed hereinabove for the purpose of illustration, it will be understood that variations or modifications thereof which lie within the cleaner hose, comprising:

a housing defining therein a storage compartment, said housing having an opening formed in one side thereof;

an elongated flexible hose adapted to be stored within said compartment;

drive means for causing said hose to be paid out or hauled in through said opening, said drive means including a reversible motor;

said drive means including a pair of rotatable rollers rotatably supported adjacent said opening and positioned for engagement with said hose so that said hose is held between said rollers, said motor being drivingly interconnected to at least one of said rollers so that said rollers rotate in reverse directions depending upon the direction of rotation of said motor;

first means for stopping said motor after the desired length of hose has been paid out of said opening, said first means including first switch means mounted adjacent one side of said pair of rollers and a first switch actuating member mounted on said hose adjacent the rear end thereof and adapted for engagement with said first switch means when said hose has been paid out of said opening; and

second means for stopping said motor after the hose has been hauled into the compartment, said second means including second switch means mounted adjacent the other side of said pair of rollers and a second switch actuating member mounted on said hose adjacent the forward end thereof and adapted for engagement with said second switch means when the hose has been hauled through said openinginto said compartment. I

2. An apparatus according to claim 1, further including auxiliary switch means for permitting manual control of said motor.

3. An apparatus according to claim 2, wherein said first switch actuating member is movable along said hose so as to adjust the position thereof relative to said hose, whereby the length of said hose which is paid out of said compartment can be selectively adjusted.

4. An apparatus according to claim 2, wherein each of said first and second switch means comprises a pair of switches which are disposed on diametrically opposite sides of the hose and are connected electrically in parallel.

5. An apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the storage compartment defined within said housing permits storage of said hose therein in a random manner.

6. An apparatus adapted for attachment to a suction cleaner to facilitate the paying out and hauling in of a cleaning hose, comprising:

a housing defining therein a storage compartment, said housing having an opening formed in one side thereof;

an elongated flexible hose stored within said compartment in a random manner;

drive means for causing said hose to be paid out or hauled in through said opening, said drive means including a drive motor and a reversible rotatable 7. An apparatus according to claim 6, including manually operable switch means mounted on said housing for causing activation of said drive means when said hose is to be either paid out of or hauled into said compartment.

8. An apparatus according to claim 7, wherein said drive means includes a second roller disposed opposite the first-mentioned roller so that the hose is held between said rollers. 

1. An apparatus adapted for attachment to a suction cleaner to facilitate the paying out and hauling in of a cleaner hose, comprising: a housing defining therein a storage compartment, said housing having an opening formed in one side thereof; an elongated flexible hose adapted to be stored within said compartment; drive means for causing said hose to be paid out or hauled in through said opening, said drive means including a reversible motor; said drive means including a pair of rotatable rollers rotatably supported adjacent said opening and positioned for engagement with said hose so that said hose is held between said rollers, said motor being drivingly interconnected to at least one of said rollers so that said rollers rotate in reverse directions depending upon the direction of rotation of said motor; first means for stopping said motor after the desired length of hose has been paid out of said opening, said first means including first switch means mounted adjacent one side of said pair of rollers and a first switch actuating member mounted on said hose adjacent the rear end thereof and adapted for engagement with said first switch means when said hose has been paid out of said opening; and second means for stopping said motor after the hose has been hauled into the compartment, said second means including second switch means mounted adjacent the other side of said pair of rollers and a second switch actuating member mounted on said hose adjacent the forward end thereof and adapted for engagement with said second switch means when the hose has been hauled through said opening into said compartment.
 2. An apparatus according to claim 1, further including auxiliary switch means for permitting manual control of said motor.
 3. An apparatus according to claim 2, wherein said first switch actuating member is movable along said hose so as to adjust the position thereof relative to said hose, whereby the length of said hose which is paid out of said compartment can be selectively adjusted.
 4. An apparatus according to claim 2, wherein each of said first and second switch means comprises a pair of switches which are disposed on diametrically opposite sides of the hose and are connected electrically in parallel.
 5. An apparatus according to claim 1, wherein the storage compartment defined within said housing permits storage of said hose therein in a random manner.
 6. An apparatus adapted for attachment to a suction cleaner to facilitate the paying out and hauling in of a cleaning hose, comprising: a housing defining therein a storage compartment, said housing having an opening formed in one side thereof; an elongated flexible hose stored within said compartment in a random manner; drive means for causing said hose to be paid out or hauled in through said opening, said drive means including a drive motor and a reversible rotatable roller rotatably supported adjacent said opening and positioned for engagement with said hose for causing said hose to be paid out or hauled in through said opening depending upon the direction of rotation of said roller; and control means for stopping said drive means after a desired length of hose has been paid out of said opening and for also stopping said drive means when the hose has been hauled into said compartment and stored therein in a random manner.
 7. An apparatus according to claim 6, including manually operable switch means mounted on said housing for causing activation of said drive means when said hose is to be either paid out of or hauled into said compartment.
 8. An apparatus according to claim 7, wherein said drive means includes a second roller disposed opposite the first-mentioned roller so that the hose is held between said rollers. 